Martha Stewart is having her yearly Valentine’s Day workshop right now so her show is full of all kinds of pretty Valentine’s themed crafts and projects! One of the projects she featured this week were small crepe paper roses that I thought would be beautiful for weddings too! While she explains how to make the roses and turn them into barrettes, you could choose to make them into something else too if you like!

Next, print the template! Then cut out the rectangle containing the petal shapes and stack them on top of the three paper rectangles. Staple into place.

Now, cut out the petals! You will end up with three tear-drop shaped petals and nine heart shaped petals.

To shape the petals: Cup in center; Wrap left and right top edges around a toothpick to curl.

Build the flower by placing the tear drop petals first, and then the heart petals around eachother, holding onto the bottoms.

Fasten the petals in place by wrapping wire around the base, then wrap the wire around a bamboo skewer. Secure with glue.

Mix Smooth-Cast 327 according to manufacturer’s directions. Dip the flower into the mix and shake off excess. Insert bamboo skewer into Styrofoam while the flower hardens. Repeat for a second coat.

Use pruners to snip off the “skewer stem”.

Finally spray both sides of the flower with the krylon matte spray and allow to dry.

To complete the rose, cut out the leaf shape from the template and trace it on your green felt. Cut out your leaf!

If you are making a barrette or pin, glue the barrette or pin backing to the back of the flower and then cover it by gluing on your green felt leaf. If you plan on using the roses simply as pretty decor, skip gluing on the barrette or pin and just attach the felt leaf!

That’s it! When complete you will have a pretty crepe paper rose that is actually pretty durable since you sealed it with the smooth cast and the finish spray.

Some ideas for their use..

Pin it into your pretty wedding hair, make one for each of your bridesmaids hair..or put some in the hair of your flower girls!

You may choose to scatter them around your cake on your cake table for decoration, or even around the center of the guest tables as an addition to your centerpieces!

Something that may be worth trying would be threading the backs of the roses with monofilament or clear fishing line, securing with glue..Then you could have pretty strands of raining crepe paper flowers to hang as decor! You may need to thread them before sealing them though..I’m guessing the seal may make it hard to shove a needle through! You may be able to avoid the threading all together and just glue them directly to the monofilament and hide/secure the glue job with your green felt leaf!

These are just a few ideas..If you create these pretty flowers for your big day we’d love to see!

(Here is a quick mock-up so you can see what they look like, I’m sure you can do a prettier job embellishing! 😉 )

I found this fantastic video on youtube by tommr1 showing how to make your own wedding favor seed envelopes very easily and affordably! You only need a few items to craft these cute little envelopes. Your guests will love these little seed favors and can think of your wedding every time they see the little plant they grew from your special favor.

Optional: Embellishments such as a rubber stamp, pens/markers, glitter, crystals etc. to adorn your envelope with after folding

Here is his informative video showing how to fold your paper into an adorable seed envelope…

Once you fold your envelope you may choose to embellish the envelope with your names and wedding date, a themed rubber stamp, your monogram, or even a little wedding poem pertaining to seeds and growth. (Click here for an excellent group of wedding seed favor poems that would work great on your handmade favors!)

The seeds you use can also reflect your wedding colors and/or theme. For example, if you are using gerbera daisies as your main flower for the day then daisy seeds may be a cute favor! Another idea may be pumpkin seeds if you are having a fall wedding.

Pocketfold wedding invitations have become very popular with brides over the past few years. They look very classy and beautiful upon completion, and are also very functional! The invites are customizable to your wedding theme and colors, and the pockets can hold a variety of cards that include wedding information (such as RSVP, map and directions, rehearsal dinner info, reception info..etc!).

Making the pockets yourself is a more affordable way of achieving these stunning invites! DIY pocketfolds range in price from $2-3 dollars a piece depending on your location and materials purchased. This is much cheaper than paying the typical $8 a piece you would spend online! The biggest sacrifice for these invites is your own time..but if you set up a table in front of your tv or dvr you can just make them day to day while you watch your favorite shows!

I found fantastic step by step instructions on ehow by a user named missmelinda25 who very generously shared how she created her own pocketfolds. Thanks Miss Mel!

You will need…

11×17 Colored Cardstock (Each sheet should create 2 pocketfolds)

Exacto knife, rotary cutter and/or paper cutter

scissors

ruler

Super tape(double sided)

rotary scoring blade

embellishments (optional)

Now that you’ve gathered and ordered all the necessary materials..you’re ready to go! Are you ready? Here we go (image intensive!!) 😀

The first step in creating your pocketfold is to take your 11×17″ cardstock and cut out the basic shape/size. It’s easiest if you make a template first, that way you can just trace the remaining pocketfolds using the template (saves you time!). The template MissMelinda made had the following measurements: 14.5″ long x 9 1/16″ wide. To create the L-shape, you’ll need to cut out a rectangle 3″ x 8 5/8″. To make it even easier, you may want to find the shape of pocketfold that you like online, buy just one and use that as your template. You can use either a rotary cutter, paper cutter or exacto knife to make your cuts-whatever is easier for you.

Create the Outer Pointed Flap – Find the center of the outer flap and place your ruler there. Line it up with the right edge to form a diagonal line ending your line at 1/2″ from the top and make your cut. Do the same to the left side and make a cut from the center to the left side 1/2″

Create the Inner Pocket Folder – Here you will do the opposite. Find the center of the inner pocket and go down 1/5″. Line up your ruler with the right edge and make a diagonal cut. Do the same for the left side.

Score your pocketfold – Your first score will be 2.5″ down from the outer pointed flap.

Make your second score using the vertical line of the inner pocket. If you look at the picture, you’re cutting on the left side of the ruler.

Make the final score at the base of the inner pocket. Make the score going horizontally at (what will be) the base of the pocket.

Fold each of the scored lines. You can use a bone folder tool (or metal spoon!) if you’d like, although that’s optional.

Place a piece of super tape on each side of the inner pocket. The Super Tape is double-sided so after you stick the tape down, you’ll see red tape that you’ll remove in the next step.

Remove the red tape and then fold up the flap to make your inner pocket.

That’s it! Your pocket is all ready for your invitation mat, inserts and embellishments. Slide various cardstock cards in increasing heights in the pocket for your guests to pull out and explore! Finish your pocket invite by folding it up and banding it with a pretty colored ribbon.

These step by step instructions will help you create a ggorgeous pocket for your invites! I will further discuss customizing inserts and embellishments in a later post 🙂 Make sure you send pics of your handmade pockets if you create some of your own! We want to see 🙂